@maceng As wonderful as this game is, I feel that a 10 is a genre-defining, revolutionary and unique game that hits literally every right note. Believe me, the 9 is not a slight against the game; I gave Shovel Knight a 9, as well, and that's one of my favorite games of 2014.

Hey guys! Thanks for reading the review. Regarding the score: I can't speak for Phil's individual thoughts on the matter, but typically a perfect 10 is a defining, groundbreaking (no pun intended) title that changes the way we look at the genre, platform, character etc. Shovel Knight takes platform conventions and refines them beautifully. A 9 is by no means a bad score! Super Mario 3D Land got a 9!

@Stix_Remix it's not a Mystery Dungeon-style game; those are turn-based and have rules about enemy movement and progression. This is more of a randomly generated Gauntlet (an old multiplayer arcade title).